Beautiful Belgrade

When I got the email from Remote Year saying that I had officially been accepted into the program, first thing I did was look at the itinerary to see what cities I would be living in for the next year (once approved by my company, of course).

I had heard of the four South American cities, had been to two of European cities, and was excited about the thought of living in Asia, but Month #7 in Belgrade, Serbia seemed like a complete mystery. What is Serbia?

That’s the reaction I got from many people when giving the rundown of the year. A lot of excitement over the other places and then, “Serbia, huh?” It was the biggest question mark on the map for me and honestly I did no research before winding up there for the month of September.

I didn’t quite feel ready to leave Prague yet, as life there had felt so normal along the year of crazy. People spoke English, our workspace was beautiful, and I got my hair and nails done (first world problems, I know). But then we boarded the bus for a long ass ride to Serbia, with a quick pit stop to have lunch and a beer or seven at one of my favorite bars in the whole world, Szimpla Kert in Budapest. If you haven’t been to Budapest yet, what the heck are you waiting for? That’s one cool ass city and would be a perfect spot for Remote Year IMO.

My apartment in Belgrade was right in the center of town (ir al centro), I was never able to remember what the name of the area or the surrounding street names were but it was nice and close to the main shopping street, the river, and the Fortress as well as tons of cafes and restaurants. Everything was within walking distance and for a city that I legitimately knew nothing about, life was surprisingly easy (and I guess they like Mean Girls LOL).

There were a few cafes that I worked from all the time like Aviator and Supernatural (good wifi and better looking baristas), a few restaurants that I knew the menu by heart (Smokvica and Supermarket Deli to name a few), and a couple of nightclubs that were some of my most fun nights on Remote Year (Hot Mess and Freestyler).

There wasn’t a whole lot to do or see in Belgrade (or maybe there was and I missed out, oops, and I also spent a full weekend making a pillow fort in my living room because… sometimes you get tired on Remote Year), so I went on two pretty awesome trips in September. I wrote about my Labor Day Weekend spent in Montenegro instead of fist pumping down the shore, which was a fun change of pace. And then I wrote about an exhibit I saw in Copenhagen when I was there for a week.

Montenegro was a breathtaking beachside paradise; Denmark was a perfect utopia of beautiful blondes on bikes, and Belgrade was a bit gritty and gray, but all three places made for a memorable month on Remote Year.

Brooklyn Bri became Belgrade Bri and was ready to buy property here, safe to say that he loved it and the amount of street art to take photos of. Other highlights include Tinder Date to a Serbian soccer game, playing tennis at Novak Djokovic’s tennis academy, bike riding along the river, yoga in the park and walking around a city full of cigarette smoke.

Belgrade was a pleasant surprise for having no expectations and no idea what to expect, but… Croatian beaches are calling!